JP2012111540A - Constant flow rate valve device of beverage server system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To disclose a constant flow rate valve device capable of stabilizing a beverage flow pressure in a server, in order to supply a homogeneous beverage.SOLUTION: The constant flow rate valve device which is installed in the midstream of a flow passage of a beverage server system configured for supplying a beverage by applying a pressurized gas to a beverage barrel, integrally includes a shutoff section on a primary side and a constant flow rate section on a secondary side with their valve chambers communicating with each other. The shutoff section has a spherical float valve with a specific gravity smaller than that of the beverage and larger than that of a gas, a fixed position space for the float valve is formed at an upper part of an inside of the valve chamber, and the constant flow rate section has, on a secondary side of the valve chamber, an orifice with a diameter smaller than that of a beverage flow inlet on a primary side of the valve chamber. In this valve chamber, a needle valve formed with a conical surface able to go into the orifice and forming a beverage flow passage is slidably contained and a spring energizing the needle valve in a direction of separating from the orifice is contained.

Description

  The present invention relates to a constant flow valve device that stabilizes the pouring pressure of a beverage during normal operation and closes the flow path when there is no beverage in the barrel in the beverage server system.

  As shown in FIG. 3, in the conventional general beverage server system, the gas cylinder GB and the cooling device (heat exchange device) CA are connected to the beverage barrel BT via the dispenser head DH, and the pressure is reduced to a predetermined pressure from the gas cylinder GB. By applying pressurized gas to the liquid level in the beverage barrel BT, the beverage is pumped to the cooling device CA, and the beverage cooled by opening the cock C is poured into a glass or a mug.

  By the way, in the above general beverage server system, it is good when the beverage remains in the barrel and is functioning normally, but when the remaining amount of beverage is exhausted, bubbles and carbon dioxide gas are released to the server side vigorously. It is inconvenient. Therefore, a person who pours a beverage into a mug or the like empirically perceives that the remaining amount of the beverage is lost, and quickly closes the cock C. However, since the beverage is pressurized with carbon dioxide gas of 1 atm or more, it is difficult to avoid the foam from being ejected in large quantities from the nozzle at the end. For this reason, it may be possible to automatically stop the supply of carbon dioxide gas when the remaining amount of beverage is exhausted, but there is a problem that the valve mechanism becomes complicated and the cost increases.

  In order to solve this type of problem, for example, a liquid supply cutoff valve disclosed in Patent Documents 1 to 3 is known. Such a liquid supply cutoff valve is provided with a float valve having a specific gravity smaller than that of the supply liquid in the valve chamber. When an appropriate vortex of the liquid is formed in the valve chamber, the float valve is drawn into the vortex. Stable while rotating at a predetermined position in the valve chamber. When the liquid remaining in the tank runs out, the float valve has a function of seating on the valve seat by gas pressure and automatically stopping the supply of liquid.

JP 2002-46797 A JP 2005-163811 A JP 2007-1635 A

  The liquid supply shut-off valves of Patent Documents 1 to 3 effectively fulfill the initial purpose in the state of use, but do not have the function of adjusting the pressure, and therefore do not stabilize the quality of the beverage alone. That is, for example, in beer, since the amount of foam and texture when poured into a glass or mug has an important effect on quality, it is necessary to pour out beer at a constant pressure. It varies depending on the temperature atmosphere and the remaining amount of beer in the barrel. Conventionally, in order to cope with this pressure change, depending on experience and intuition, the opening degree of the cock was adjusted each time, so that a certain level of skill was required to provide beer of a predetermined quality.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the subject mentioned above, The place made into the objective is to disclose the constant flow valve apparatus which can stabilize the drink flow pressure in a server in order to provide a homogeneous drink.

  In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the device of the present invention is provided in the middle of a flow path of a beverage server system configured to be able to supply a beverage by applying a pressurized gas to a beverage barrel, A constant flow rate part is connected to and integrated with a constant flow rate part on the next side, and the blocking part has a float valve having a specific gravity smaller than that of a beverage and a specific gravity larger than that of a gas. In the upper part of the chamber is provided with a stationary space where the float valve floats when the beverage flows, while the constant flow rate portion forms an orifice having a smaller diameter on the secondary side of the valve chamber than the inlet on the primary side, In the valve chamber, a needle valve having a water passage formed in a conical surface capable of entering the orifice is slidably accommodated, and a spring that energizes the needle valve so as to be separated from the orifice is accommodated.

  In the present invention, the blocking portion and the constant flow rate portion are integrally provided, and the arrangement thereof may be any one of up, down, left and right, but by providing the valve chambers on the same axis, the water loss of the beverage can be reduced. preferable.

  The float valve is preferably spherical. This is because the flow valve is stably placed in the stationary space during normal flow. Furthermore, it is preferable that the valve chamber of the shut-off portion and the constant flow rate portion are integrally formed on the primary side and the secondary side of one valve box. This is because the sealing portion can be minimized and the productivity of the device of the present invention can be increased, rather than creating and integrating the blocking portion and the constant flow rate portion as separate members.

  Furthermore, the apparatus of the present invention can be attached to any location as long as it is in the flow path of the beverage server system. However, when the beverage server system includes a cock for pouring beverage, a constant flow rate unit can be connected to the cock. It is preferable that This is because the fluid pressure (flow rate) of the beverage can be stabilized at the final stage by attaching the device of the present invention to the end of the beverage server system.

  According to the present invention, even when the beverage delivery pressure is not constant due to the use environment or the like of the beverage server system, the constant flow rate portion absorbs this and stabilizes the secondary side beverage dispensing pressure (dispensing amount). Therefore, even a person who is not skilled in the beverage dispensing operation using a cock or the like can always provide a homogeneous beverage. In addition, when there is no beverage in the beverage barrel, the blocking section blocks the flow path and automatically prevents inadvertent ejection of pressurized gas or foam, so that the beverage can be stored without worrying about the remaining amount of the beverage barrel. The extraction work can be performed.

Sectional drawing which showed the state at the time of normal operation of the constant flow valve apparatus which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. Sectional view showing the shut-off state Conventionally, the perspective view which shows the whole common drink server system

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment in which the apparatus of the present invention is directly attached to a lever-type cock C, which is downstream of the cooling device CA of the beverage server system of FIG. The device of the present invention is provided with a shutoff portion 10 on the cooling device CA side (primary side) and a constant flow rate portion 20 on the cock C side (secondary side) on the center line CL of the cock C. In the embodiment, one valve box (casing) 1 is processed and the valve chambers 11 and 12 are integrally formed, and connecting portions 2 and 3 for the cooling device CA and the cock C are formed at both ends. . The shutoff portion 10 and the valve chambers 11 and 21 of the constant flow rate portion 20 communicate with each other through the communication hole 4.

  The shut-off part 10 in the device of the present invention communicates with the beverage inlet 12 flowing from the cooling device CA via the connecting part 2 on the center line CL of the valve chamber 11 formed on the primary side of the valve box 1. In addition to opening an outlet 13 for communicating with the constant flow rate portion 12 in communication with the hole 4, a float valve 14 is accommodated therein. The float valve 14 is made of a material having a specific gravity smaller than that of a beverage, such as plastic, and a specific gravity larger than that of a gas, and is formed into a spherical shape that can be seated and closed on the outlet 13. . Further, the float valve 14 is lifted by buoyancy or vortex, and the valve chamber 11 is extended upward so as to form a stationary space 15 so that the inlet / outlet ports 12 and 13 are stopped at the upper position.

  On the other hand, the constant flow rate unit 20 uses the inside of a cylindrical box 22 that can be accommodated in a circular hole 5 formed inside the secondary side connection part 3 of the valve box 1 as a valve chamber 21, and the primary of the valve box 22. An inlet 23 for receiving a beverage from the blocking portion 10 is formed on the side through the communication hole 4, and an orifice 24 having a smaller diameter than the inlet 23 is formed on the secondary side. The valve box 22 accommodates the needle valve 25 so as to be slidable in the water direction. The valve box wall around the orifice 24 is used as a spring receiver, and the needle valve 25 is opened, that is, away from the orifice 24. A spring 26 is energized.

  The structure of the needle valve 25 will be described in more detail. A hollow conical valve body 25b in which a plurality of water passage holes 25a are formed in a conical surface is provided in the center, and an outer diameter cylinder corresponding to the inner diameter of the valve box 22 is provided around the hollow conical valve body 25b. The guide part 25c is provided. Although three water holes 25a are planned to be provided at intervals of 120 degrees, the number is not limited to this. The primary concave portion of the conical valve body 25 b functions as a primary pressure receiving portion, and the secondary convex portion functions as an opening degree adjusting portion that enters the orifice 24. As a result, the needle valve 25 uses the water passage pressure of the beverage that has passed through the blocking portion 10 as the fluctuating pressure on the primary side and the urging force of the spring 26 as the fixed pressure on the secondary side so that the inside of the valve chamber 21 is antagonized. By sliding in the axial direction, the opening of the orifice 24 is adjusted to stabilize the secondary pressure of the beverage.

  In this embodiment, the cock C is connected to the secondary side of the constant flow rate portion 20 by the cap nut N, and the valve box 22 is inserted into the circular hole 5 by the connection end C1 of the cock C inserted into the circular hole 5. It is pushed in and placed.

  Next, the operation of the apparatus of the present invention will be described. First, when there is a remaining amount in the beverage barrel and the beverage can be supplied as usual, the valve chamber 11 of the blocking unit 10 is filled with the beverage, and the float valve 14 is stopped in the stationary space 15 by buoyancy or vortex flow of the beverage passing through the valve chamber 11. As a result, since the inflow / outflow ports 12 and 13 open simultaneously, the beverage passes through the constant flow rate unit 20 as it is.

  In the constant flow rate unit 20, the position of the needle valve 25 is determined according to the water flow pressure acting on the needle valve 25, and as a result, the opening degree of the orifice 24 is also determined. That is, the position of the needle valve 25 is determined where the water flow pressure acting on the needle valve 25 and the elastic force of the spring 26 antagonize. Therefore, if the water flow pressure (primary pressure) increases, the needle valve 25 moves forward while compressing the spring 26, and the opening of the orifice 24 decreases as the tip side of the valve body 25b enters the orifice 24. On the other hand, when the primary pressure (water flow pressure) decreases, the needle valve 14 moves backward in the direction away from the orifice 24 by the elastic force of the spring 26, and as a result, the opening degree of the orifice 24 increases. Thus, since the opening degree (flow-flow cross-sectional area) of the orifice 24 is adjusted according to the upper and lower of the water flow pressure (flow velocity) acting on the needle valve 25, the change of the primary pressure is absorbed and the secondary pressure is kept constant. be able to. If the primary pressure becomes abnormally high, the valve body 25b completely engages with the orifice 24, and also acts to shut off the flow path urgently.

  The secondary pressure, that is, the beverage dispensing pressure (beverage dispensing amount) from the cock becomes constant by the primary pressure fluctuation absorbing action by the constant flow rate unit 20 as described above, so that the beverage quality can also be stabilized. . In particular, when the beverage is beer, even a person who is not skilled in Cox operation can provide a high-quality beer excellent in foaming and fineness of foam.

  On the other hand, when the beverage barrel is emptied, only the gas flows through the server flow path, and the valve chamber 11 of the blocking unit 10 is also filled with gas, but the float valve 14 has a higher specific gravity than the gas, Simultaneously with dropping from the stationary space 15, the float valve 14 is seated on the outlet 13 by gas pressure as shown in FIG. 2. Thereby, the flow of only gas is interrupted in front of the interrupting part 10, that is, in front of the cock C, and even if the barrel is emptied, no gas or bubbles are ejected from the cock C.

  The shape of the valve body 25b of the needle valve 25 in the constant flow rate unit 20 is preferably a conical shape so that the slide amount of the needle valve 25 and the opening of the orifice 24 are correlated, but other shapes are also possible. May be. Also, with respect to the shut-off part 10, the shape of the float valve 14 is preferably a perfect sphere, but it is stopped in a stationary space when the beverage flows, and seated at the outlet 13 (valve hole) when only the gas flows. If the flow is blocked, the shape of the float valve 14 is not limited to a perfect spherical shape. Furthermore, in the said embodiment, although this invention apparatus was directly attached to the cock C, the attachment position of this invention apparatus is not limited to this, It can attach to the arbitrary locations in the middle of the flow path of a drink server system. Furthermore, the blocking section 10 and the constant flow section 20 are arranged side by side on the same axis in the above embodiment, but if the blocking section 10 is positioned on the primary side and the constant flow section 20 is positioned on the secondary side, another section is provided. An arrangement mode is also possible.

  The present invention is optimally applied to a beverage server system, particularly a beer server. However, the present invention can also be applied to other liquid supply (pressure feeding) devices that deliver liquid by pressurized gas.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Valve box 2/3 Connection part 4 Communication hole 10 Blocking part 11 Valve room 14 of cutoff part Float valve 15 Fixed space 20 Constant flow part 21 Valve chamber 22 of constant flow part Valve box 24 Orifice 25 Needle valve 26 Spring

Claims (5)

Provided in the middle of the flow path of a beverage server system configured to be able to supply a beverage by applying pressurized gas to the beverage barrel, with a shut-off portion on the primary side and a constant flow rate portion on the secondary side with each valve chamber The blocking portion has a float valve having a specific gravity smaller than that of the beverage and larger than that of the gas, and the float valve is provided at the upper portion of the valve chamber when the beverage flows. While the stationary flow space is provided, the constant flow section forms an orifice having a smaller diameter than the inlet on the primary side on the secondary side of the valve chamber, and the conical surface into which the orifice can enter the valve chamber A constant flow valve device for a beverage server system, wherein a needle valve having a water passage formed therein is slidably accommodated and a spring for energizing the needle valve so as to be separated from the orifice is accommodated. The constant flow valve device of the beverage server system according to claim 1, wherein the shut-off unit and the constant flow rate unit are provided with coaxial valve chambers on the same axis. The constant flow valve device of the beverage server system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the float valve is spherical. The constant flow valve device of the beverage server system according to claim 2 or 3, wherein a valve chamber of a shut-off part and a constant flow part is integrally formed on each of the primary side and the secondary side of one valve box. The constant flow valve apparatus of the beverage server system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the beverage server system includes a cock for pouring a beverage, and a constant flow rate unit can be connected to the cock.

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